An Intimacy of Equals: Lesbian Feminist Ethics

by Lilian Mohin (Editor)

At a time when increasing numbers of lesbians have learned that therapy doesn't work, religion may not be a haven, and even cinema is problematic, this book presents an exciting way forward. Readers find in An Intimacy of Equals an accessibly written blend of intellectually challenging theory alongside autobiographical narrative. Reading this anthology is intended to be, very like the editing process which created it, a means of pulling together the diverse strands of lesbian strategies for coping with marginalization from the mainstream. Essays by activists, academics, fiction writers, film theorists, clerics, and agnostics include Julia Penelope on femininity, Rabbi Sheila Shulman and lapsed Catholic writer Patricia Duncker on feminism and the Bible, Celia Kitzinger on the misuse of psychology, Anna Livia on the meaning of gossip, and much more.

Genres: Lesbian, LGBT, Feminism, Nonfiction

157 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1994

Reviews

[Max · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of cool stuff!! Nett hart’s piece was my favorite by far. I loved celia and Rachel’s pieces, didn’t notice any major differences from changing our minds but I love changing our minds.. Julia penelope is unfortunately on a weird tangent here I think is mostly misguided and needlessly divisive and a poor vehicle for the many good points in the piece.. understandable given the events around it but still....... unfortunate... and the follow up on the article about physical disability was kinda weird too. But mostly awesome

[Heathyr]

To pass or not to pass, that is the question. This diverse set of essays challenged my outlook in a lot of ways. I highly recommend it.
Essays are on the following: how psychology has failed (and continues to fail) lesbian women; how in a culture where conforming to femininity is rewarded/required, more feminine lesbians can throw the butches under the bus for the privileges of passing as heterosexual; the misrepresentation of black lesbians in film (seriously it's horrible. Do male filmmakers understand how to portray lesbians at all????); the eroticization of differences and power structures in relationships that stems from heteropatriarchy; and how religion (focus is on Judaism and Christianity in this book) fails women in general, but lesbians specifically.
[yes that was one sentence]